Herbstreit: Washington should 'sprint' to draft Mac Jones if possible originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
With so much talk about an alleged love affair between the Washington Football Team and North Dakota State rookie quarterback Trey Lance, plenty of fans seem to forget about any other young passers available in this year's draft.
Well, there are others.
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ESPN lead college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit reminded the world just how much he likes Alabama QB Mac Jones during an interview on The Michael Kay Show on Friday.
"I'm really high on Mac Jones," Herbstreit said. "Of all the QBs coming into the league his ability to process coverage, read, recognize pre-snap to post-snap and identify, see his read and get the ball out accurately is as good as Joe Burrow’s. Mac Jones has that same ability to make the reads and get the ball out."
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Burrow was the No. 1 overall pick last year after a record-breaking 2019 season at LSU. His numbers were jaw-dropping - 5,600 yards and 60 TDs - and the Tigers won the National Championship.
Jones' didn't post those numbers, but his were still strong - 4,100 yards and 41 TDs - and the Crimson Tide won the National Championship too.
And for anybody that wants to dismiss Heirbstreit's praise of Jones by naming all the other talent on the Alabama offense, remember that LSU had first-round picks at wide receiver and running back as well.
"Their offense was just as good, if not better," Herbstreit said of 2020 Alabama compared to 2019 LSU.
Jones isn't Burrow, but he's not going No. 1 overall either. That will be Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence.
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Much speculation has suggested that San Francisco will take Jones with the third-overall pick, but if he doesn't go there, it's possible he drops a bit.
Could that mean Washington trades into the Top 10 for him? Maybe, who knows really.
Washington head coach Ron Rivera has said over and over that there's no telling what will happen in the draft until the teams ahead of Washington start to make their selections.
"As far as the draft is concerned, we’re going to react to what happens in front of us," Rivera said Friday. "Picking at 19 kind of puts us in the middle. It’s going to be interesting as far as we’re concerned.”
For Herbstreit, however, if Jones somehow was to last until the 19th-pick where Washington sits, it's a no-brainer.
"If Mac Jones is sitting there, and you’re a fan of Washington, I would sprint to get that card in as fast as you could."
